This is Viewpoints for Tuesday, May 31, 2016

The slide

I just read a statement by President Obama in which he said his restroom pronouncement protects the dignity of the American people. What? How does sharing a public restroom with boys, girls ladies, men, perverts and people who do not understand biological gender, privacy, morality, religious beliefs, or much else for that matter, “protect my dignity?” To force teachers to embrace this “one restroom for all” philosophy and to have them “teach” this to our impressionable children is unconscionable.

I thought our leadership had gone as far into dictating immorality as they could go when they mandated same sex “marriage.” Boy, was I wrong. Why is it a man can say he is really a woman, put on a dress, and he has to be accepted as a woman, but if a man says he is a policeman, puts on a police uniform, he can be arrested for impersonation of an officer. Both are impersonating something that they are not.

Our nation is sliding down the slippery slope of total moral depravity very rapidly. We must turn back to the godly principles our nation was founded on and the principles upon which the whole human race must embrace.

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There are multiple reasons this downward slide is happening. One of those reasons is our lack of caring about our country. This is evidenced by the low turnout at the ballot box. But when one looks at the ballot, it is even more evident that few care about the country’s future when you see how many officials are unopposed for re-election. Our local parties should be able to find people to run for offices. Even those I want returned to office, I wish they had opposition to make them accountable.

We have to turn our country around and that should start with the local primaries. There is no excuse for not voting.

Each of us needs to write our two senators and our representative and let them know we are waiting for them to speak out on these issues of morality which are being forced on us from the top down. Then begin exercising our national motto “In God We Trust,” by entering into faithful, fervent prayer to our creator.

Tracy McCollister,

Warner Robins

Go figure

Here we go again. Another airliner (Egyptair 804) goes down in the water and they cannot find it quickly. Am I missing something here, or does the airline industry place a higher value on entertainment (in-flight Internet access) than safety (GPS flight tracking). Almost every tractor-trailer rig you see on the interstate has a satellite link to its company and a GPS tracker that gives the dispatcher real time information on where the truck is located. Let’s suppose that a nice tractor-trailer rig costs $100,000 and it is hauling $20,000 worth of swingsets and bicycles to Wal-Mart with a single driver up front. Now, compare that with an airliner that costs $30 million, has a crew of 10 and a cargo of 160 souls on board. The truck has 100 percent tracking and the airliner only gets tracked when in radar coverage, which is probably less than 20 percent of the Earth.

The trucking firm finds it economically feasible to spend a few dollars each month on 24/7 tracking, while the airline spent tens of thousands to put that little hump on the top of the fuselage and pay a monthly fee just so people could check e-mail and play Angry Birds for a couple of hours, but not to have current tracking of that $30 million investment and all of those human beings that paid a tidy sum to be transported safely from A to B.

John Ricketson, Macon

Losing friends

One of the biggest disagreements in which humans are involved now is over climate change and whether humans are contributing to it. Currently the Union of Concerned Scientists is struggling with fossil fuel companies and some members of the U.S. Congress over this issue. The Union of Concerned Scientists argues that burning fossil fuels is causing the climate to heat up, and that this may have long-term devastating effects on humans and other species. The fossil fuel companies and their supporters in the U.S. Congress are trying to downplay this problem, but not all of them are denying it. It is now known, for example, that Exxon scientists knew as early as the 1970s that this problem existed.

This disagreement is having adverse effects on families and friendships. Spouses and friends who believe the climate is warming up because of human activities often want to burn less fossil fuel, while their disbelieving friends and spouses do not want to change. Historically, owning big cars and big houses has been a sign of success. But if they are helping cause global warming, they may be killing the future for those who come after us. If we disagree with our friends and spouses about this issue, we are probably in big trouble. In such an event, we are likely involved in an argument about science and anti-science. Good luck to those who are so involved.

Sam Marshall,

Milledgeville

Teachers salute

On Friday May 20, I attended a senior graduation dinner at First Presbyterian Church for my twin granddaughters. It was a great feast and wonderful fellowship. After dinner was over, an annual event at FPD is to call each senior to the stage and a teacher gives their thoughts and memories of the student over the past four years. The student does not know which teacher or coach choose their name until this moment. This was the largest graduating class for FPD, about 95 students.

As the program progressed, it crossed my mind how sincere the teachers and coaches were in their comments about their student. I felt their love and respect for the student, and, yes, even a few tears from teachers over their feelings for that person. My thoughts were how lucky we are as parents and grandparents to have such a dedicated group of people directing and leading our children through such turbulent times. The students may not realize yet the foundation they have been set on will support them through many challenges in the years to come. Also, I do know that throughout all Bibb County there are dedicated teachers in all schools (I have two daughters teaching in the Bibb system) working hard to make a difference in the lives all children. I salute each teacher in Bibb County for your efforts and dedication to all children. Have a great and safe summer.